Congress is permanently gridlocked. Bipartisanship is dead in Washington. Compromise is a dirty political word. These are all statements that have been directed (with a good deal of justification) at our federal government. Therefore it was surprising to learn that on Dec. 29, 2012 the U.S. Senate passed (73-23) a bill that had previously sailed through the House (301-118).

That bill was a blow to those of us concerned about individual privacy and liberty. It renewed (for five years) the Federal Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which had originally signed into law by President Carter in 1978. Since then it has been enhanced in 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2008. It was intended to assist our government in keeping an eye on foreign intelligence services. However, it has become a centerpiece of the web constricting individual lives as the so-called War on Terror ratcheted up after the events of 9/11/01.

As originally passed FISA authorized the president and the attorney general to conduct warrantless surveillance (including wiretapping) for up to one year. Whenever warrants were deemed necessary they could be obtained for probable cause from a special, secret 11-judge court appointed by the Chief Justice to seven-year terms. Their deliberations, their decisions, and even their names are classified.

In the years since 9/11 the power of the president to order wiretaps has been expanded to include "lone wolf" (read terrorist) operatives. Physical searches, warranted or warrantless, were also permitted. Millions of taps and other surveillance have been conducted under FISA. The exact number is a state secret. The president's authority was expanded even further. Previously only foreign individuals could be monitored. Then communications either originating or ending overseas were allowed to be surveyed. In addition, telecom companies were granted immunity from prosecution when following presidential orders.

There are several problems, as i see it, with this process. Americans are not supposed to undergo FISA surveillance. We know (through leaks) of at least one case when they have, but the exact number is classified. Also classified is information as to whether any Americans have been accidentally swept up in warrantless searches, or whether any information obtained from foreign sources has been used to trigger "back door" investigation of U.S. citizens. The process seems to me a step back toward practices of the Middle Ages.

The entire program is cloaked in secrecy. Some is obviously required by the nature of the perceived threat. But checks on the executive branch are also needed. To have this vast effort, along with its proliferating complex of intelligence agencies, taking place totally hidden from public view is definitely not what our Founders had in mind. The only visible protection available to the people is trust, a commodity in very short supply these days.

Complementing the expansion of FISA in the pantheon spawned by the War on Terror is the USA Patriot Act, signed into law on Oct. 26, 2001. It received a four-year extension on May 26, 2011. This act also was designed to curb terrorist activity. However, in pursuit of this worthy goal the executive branch has accumulated the power to invade millions of lives and conscript their privacy. Since the number of terrorists around the world keeps growing, and their actions accelerating, these powers are likely to remain in place for decades.

Under the Patriot Act the government can monitor e-mails and cell phones. It can employ roving wiretaps, or searches. It can inspect financial transactions and business records. It can deport and incarcerate, often avoiding legal safeguards. All of these can go on in secret. Restrictions on law enforcement bodies have been eased by congressional fiat. The definition of "terrorism" has been expanded. These measures, sanctioned by congress, have given the executive branch unprecedented access to power.

Due to intense classification, the public is walled off from vital details. How many of our citizens have had their lives compromised? How many incidents defined as terrorism have taken place, or been prevented? What remedies are available to those who believe they have been unfairly targeted? None of these questions, and many more, can be answered.

Our citizens are paying a social price for their protection. We are entitled to a public discussion of the threat's nature and the steps taken to thwart it. Unfortunate precedents are being set daily by drone attacks, interrogation techniques, renditions, and offshore incarcerations. Our people deserve a full disclosure of what is being done in their name. This airing is made all the more urgent by the increasing reality that FISA, and its cohorts, could exist forever.